SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, PA - AUGUST 20: Mo'ne Davis #3 of Pennsylvania pitches to a Nevada batter during the first inning of the United States division game at the Little League World Series tournament at Lamade Stadium on August 20, 2014 in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)

Photo: Rob Carr, Getty Images

SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, PA - AUGUST 20: Mo'ne Davis #3 of Pennsylvania...

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Pennsylvania's Mo'ne Davis delivers in the fifth inning against Tennessee during a baseball game in United States pool play at the Little League World Series tournament in South Williamsport, Pa., Friday, Aug. 15, 2014. Pennsylvania won 4-0 with Davis pitching a complete game two-hit shutout. AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

As a supporter of women's athletics and gender equity, I try to treat athletes of both sexes the same.

So I have the same opinion on 13-year old Mo'ne Davis as I do for any participant in the overexposed, nationally televised Little League World Series.

She's adorable, she tries hard, and I absolutely don't want to watch her on TV. Or, for that matter, see her on the cover of Sports Illustrated: This week she is the first Little Leaguer to grace that magazine's front.

Davis has slipped into the exploitation spot on ESPN normally reserved for LeBron James or Tim Tebow. By marketing her freshness and innocence, the network is ensuring those qualities vanish.

The irony of S.I. putting Davis on its cover under the headline "Remember Her Name (As if We Could Ever Forget)" is not lost on the magazine's regular readers. Less than 5 percent of S.I. covers - excluding those with thong-clad swimsuit models - feature women. If Davis grows up into a successful collegiate (she dreams of playing basketball for UConn) or professional athlete, S.I. will almost certainly forget her name.

Her exposure is because she's being treated as an oddity. That she dares succeed at a male game.

Davis can be an inspiration to young girls and boys. She can show nutty Little League parents that the sport can be a joy, not a means to an end.

While only a handful of girls have made it to the LLWS, a girl playing baseball is not exactly breaking news. Girls were on my son's baseball teams all through grade school, and my daughter played hardball until fifth grade. Until about 12 or 13 years old, girls are as strong as boys, and as agile and coordinated. When both sexes hit puberty, their abilities diverge.

In recent years, the numbers of girls in Little League has dwindled, in part due to the growth of softball leagues for younger girls. But many people believe baseball is a better game, and there's no reason girls can't play it into middle school or beyond.

Maybe Davis will inspire more girls to play baseball, which is a good thing. But I still don't want to watch her on television.